Very recently, we took a trip to Warsaw, Poland, to meet up with Krzysztof Dziedzic, who is a drummer known to all drum freaks in Poland. He is an official Zildjian endorser in our country, and his musical C.V. includes collaborations with Nigel Kennedy as well as such Polish jazz greats as Tomasz Szukalski, Henryk Miśkiewicz, Jarosław Śmietana, Adam Pierończyk, Piotr Wyleżoł, or Irek Głyk. This year, his solo album “Tempo” was nominated for the Polish Music Industry Award ‘Fryderyk’ in the “Recording Debut of the Year, Jazz” category.
All this makes Krzysztof the perfect partner to test the Zildjian K Sweet cymbals, as that is exactly why we visited the capital of Poland. It is a new series from the renowned cymbal maker, which was premiered at this year’s NAMM Show. As far as the hi hats are concerned, they are available in 15″ and 16″ sizes.
Zildjian K Sweet: 15″ and 16″ hats
1. The test
The test was carried out in the most professional studio conditions at, i. e. at the Witold Lutoslawski Polish Radio Concert Studio in Warsaw, Poland. Krzysztof Dziedzic also used K Sweet crashes and a ride, separate tests of which you are going to find on en.beatit.tv very shortly.
2. Basic specification of the cymbal tested here:
- Company: Zildjian
- Series: K Sweet
- Cymbal type: Hi Hat
- Cymbal size: 15″, 16″
- Finish: Natural, unlathed bell, randomly hammered
- Character: dark, loud chick, full body wash
- Weight: Thin (top), Extra Heavy (bottom).
3. The product and the sound
The K Sweet family is Zildjian‘s attempt to extend the legendary K series “into a new direction of tonal colors that are dark, sweet, and responsive”. That’s exactly what the hi hats tested here are. The 15-inch set is rather loud (however, certainly not obnoxious), with a loud and warm chick, produced both with a stick and a pedal, as well as a full body sound and wash when the hats are open. The 16-inch set is loud (but very nice to the ear), with an even louder and equally as warm chick, a full, crash-like explosion and body wash when open. Players should not complain about response despite the size of both hi hat sets.
What is very striking is the stylistic versatility of the cymbals. We can easily imagine them used in the context of such genres as jazz, pop, funk, blues, world music, but also rock or even metal.
4. Summary
We think we should let Krzysztof Dziedzic himself sum up the whole experience: “Zildjian K is a universal cymbal family which has a great deal of stylistic applications. You can instantly hear the Sweet series is its kin. There are no bad or mediocre Ks because they are so versatile. This feature also characterizes Zildjian K Sweet cymbals. The 15″ and 16″ hats made a huge impression on me, the 16-inch in particular. I’ve tried out many similarly sized hi hats from numerous manufacturers and have always felt they were too heavy. That wasn’t the case here. Plus, there’s the amazing sound, which is great both for a big band context as well as more groove-based situations, like Steve Jordan does. It is dark, fat and warm. As the name suggests, I felt like eating some sweets having played this hi hat. It’s a very special cymbal in Zildjian’s product range.”
Producer: https://zildjian.com/
Distributor in Poland: http://www.adamusic.pl/
OUR VERDICT: 5/5 TOP
Advantages:
- Excellently crafted
- Loud and warm chick, full and warm body wash
- Stylistic versatility
- Magnificent look
Disadvantages:
- None
Drummers and Drummerettes! It’s time to put the 15″ and 16″ Zildjian Sweet hats (still rather unknown to drummers in Poland) to the most important test of all, i. e. the en.beatit.tv viewers’ test! Exclusively for you, we give you Krzysztof Dziedzic!
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